Softlines

SGS, the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company, has published an article that gives stakeholders an insight into China’s growing online retail market for clothing. Even before the 2020 pandemic, more and more people were shifting their shopping habits from ‘bricks and mortar’ shops to online retailers. E-commerce has multiple advantages, such as accessing […]

SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, has been officially approved as a Third-Party Laboratory Member and will soon be extending its fiber fragmentation testing services beyond consortium member organizations. The textile industry has become increasingly aware of the issue of fiber fragmentation and its potential as a serious environmental polluter. The

SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, is to host a live webinar to help apparel, textile and footwear brands better understand the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines and take action to remedy non-conformance. The interactive webinar ‘Root Cause Analysis for Chemicals in Wastewater’ will set out the purpose and requirements of ZDHC Wastewater

SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, has launched new comprehensive testing protocol for footwear packaging – a first for the footwear industry. The innovative testing protocol is designed to support brand owners and retailers, including e-commerce, to have confidence that their packaging will perform well, meet environmental and sustainability standards and

In October 2020, the Swedish government announced it was postponing the implementation of its new chemical tax for clothing and footwear until 2022. The decision follows the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. First announced in May 2020, the tax is designed to phase out the use of hazardous chemicals in clothing and footwear. It is

In response to the latest changes in the COVID-19 pandemic, the French Government has recently issued a decree that recommends only face covering masks with a filtration efficiency of at least 90% be used. Issued on January 27, 2021, with the Cross Ministries Note updated on January 28, 2021, Decree No. 2021-76 takes on board

China has updated its national standard covering the generic names for man-made fibers – GB/T 4146.1-2020 Textiles-Man-made fibers – Part 1: Generic names. Issued as part of China’s No. 22 announcement on newly approved national standards in 2020, the new standard will come into effect on May 1, 2021. It covers all man-made fibers, defined

China’s Standardization Administration has put into effect its new, updated national product standard for towels – GB/T 22864-2020. The standard applies to all kinds of woven towel products made from textile fibers, but does not include: Microfiber towels Single-use towels [if !supportLists] The main technical contents of the standard are: General safety technical requirements shall

SGS, the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company, is helping clothing and textile manufacturers gain a better understanding of the growing market for organic cotton. Consumers are increasingly demanding products that are organic, not least organic textiles. Total global production of organic cotton was estimated at 239,787 metric tons in 2018/19, an increase of